Court Restrains NAF From Evicting Bauchi NHP Housing Residents

By Khalid Idris Doya

Bauchi, Bauchi State, Nigeria - August 28, 2025(Series News Online)

The High Court of Bauchi State has issued an order of interim injunction, restraining the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) from forcibly removing residents of 270 housing units situated along Ningi Road, Bauchi, pursuant to the National Housing Programme (NHP). The judicial directive was issued subsequent to a suit filed by 184 aggrieved residents, who contested the federal government's decision to transfer the estate to the NAF.

In a ruling delivered by Justice Mu'azu Abubakar of High Court No. 5, Bauchi, the court mandated that all parties maintain the status quo, pending the adjudication of the substantive motion. The court's order reads: "An interim order of injunction is hereby made restraining the respondents, whether by themselves, agents, privies, or cohorts, from further threat, harassment, or doing anything that is likely to breach the applicants' constitution right under chapter IV of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice."

The applicants, comprising Mukhtar Aminu, Ya'u Aliyu, Abubakar Muhammad, Ibrahim Musa, Abdulrahman Haruna, and 179 others, averred that the housing units were originally designed to provide affordable accommodation for low-income earners, and should not be allocated to the NAF, which has its own separate housing initiatives. They further alleged that the government had disregarded the interests of ordinary Nigerians who had previously expressed interest in the scheme.

The respondents in the matter include the Nigerian Air Force, the Nigerian Armed Forces, the Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Special Operations Command, Bauchi, the Chief of Staff of the Command HQ, Bauchi, the Commander of the Command HQ Bauchi, and the Attorney-General of the Federation.

The residents had expressed outrage and discontent over the federal government's decision to hand over the property to NAF, with some characterizing the situation as unjust. Muhammad Kabir, Secretary of the Residents' Committee, decried the fact that Air Force personnel had taken possession of the premises and ordered the residents to vacate. "We woke up to see Air Force officers occupying this place and telling us to leave. We are pleading with the federal government to reconsider, because we have nowhere to go," Kabir lamented.

The court directed the 1st - 5th respondents to maintain the status quo or stay all action pending the determination of the motion on notice. The matter has been adjourned to September 11, 2025, for further hearing.

It is recalled that the housing project was initiated in 2016 under the administration of late former President Muhammadu Buhari, with the objective of providing affordable accommodation for civil servants and low- to middle-income earners across Nigeria. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development had previously described the residents as "illegal settlers" and issued them a 48-hour eviction notice, sparking widespread protests and appeals for intervention by President Bola Tinubu and Housing Minister Ahmed Musa Dangiwa.